Precocious kid and definitely talented – but not much musicality going on in that Giant Steps clip. Maybe he was goofing around and not taking things too seriously. Yes I know what I sound like – I'm raining on a little kid's parade. Sorry! I watched a few other clips of him. His sister plays drums and they've been featured on the Harry Connick TV show (which I heard was cancelled, too bad – there's been good music on there). I saw a clip of him playing with Bob James which sounds pretty nice, and he gets a good feeling going on that blues – so I know it's in there! I hope he continues to develop but I fear for these young folk in the Instagram/YouTube/FB world. Sometimes it seems like a little too much, too soon.

I just watched the Bob James 4 hands duo thing on FB. That was a fun watch. Very talented kid.

And Bob James always writes so hip and musical. Many people forget that he was a serious straight ahead player in the '60s before he branched off into more crossover stuff.

Justin obviously has the technical facility already. And an excellent time feel too. I'm hearing more chops oriented improvisation at this juncture. But he's certainly in the pocket and hopefully will develop into something more deep, musically, then a social media sensation.

How on EARTH do these kids get this good this young?? This kid, Joey Alexander, on and on.... I watched a YouTube vid of a THREE year old kid ripping some classical music the other day....what's stunning to me with the jazz kids is their very advanced grasp of the vocabulary at such a young age, just amazing....kind of blows the "10,000 hour" theory to smithereens, doesn't it?

How on EARTH do these kids get this good this young?? This kid, Joey Alexander, on and on.... I watched a YouTube vid of a THREE year old kid ripping some classical music the other day....what's stunning to me with the jazz kids is their very advanced grasp of the vocabulary at such a young age, just amazing....kind of blows the "10,000 hour" theory to smithereens, doesn't it?

One thing I noticed with Justin is how he interacts with the rest of the band. Giving and receiving cues when they were changing passages, and such. He's locked in with the drummer on that one I posted. I also appreciated the dynamics shown by him. When to comp, and when to stretch.

As Kevin Whalum said, we've all seen the prodigies. While they are technically outstanding, a lot of them look like robots.

This kid looks like he is "in" the music, not just being a lifeless machine.

That duet with he did Bob James blew me away.

I In reference to the Cory Henry clip I posted, I think Cory sees a lot of himself in Justin.

One thing I noticed with Justin is how he interacts with the rest of the band. Giving and receiving cues when they were changing passages, and such. He's locked in with the drummer on that one I posted. I also appreciated the dynamics shown by him. When to comp, and when to stretch.

agree, he plays as if to have extensive experience interacting with bands. where does that come from?

These are the things that make me believe in reincarnation......especially when you see 4 and 5 year olds killin' it. It's like they came here already knowing how.....

I've had the same thought

Who do you think he was previously?

You know....it occurs to me. I want to say that in no way shape or form am I saying that this young man hasn't worked his butt off to achieve his ability....rather I was talking about the REALLY young ones you see on YouTube every now and then, who simply haven't been on the planet long enough to play what they do, seemingly.....

From an early age these type of kids work harder than most, have good training, good reflexes and coordination, excellent mental function, and are in a nurturing musical environment ,the parents job. These all add up....

From an early age these type of kids work harder than most, have good training, good reflexes and coordination, excellent mental function, and are in a nurturing musical environment (the parents job). These all add up to far above average.

Reincarnation or a gift of God talk is nonsense.

Ohhhhhhhh.....sorry to bother you. Glad you have it all figured out though. Thanks for taking the time to set me straight